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Faculty of Languages and Communication

English Language and Literature (Ceased Enrollment)

136 Credit Hours 60% Minimum Grade

Department Welcome

Dr. Hanan Madanat

“ Welcome to the English Language and Literature (Ceased Enrollment) department! ”
Hanan Madanat

Message from the Department Head

Welcome Message from the Head of the English Language and Literature Department

It is my pleasure to welcome you to the English Language and Literature Department/Faculty of Languages and Communication at the American University of Madaba (AUM).

English, as the global lingua franca, plays a vital role in connecting people, cultures, and industries worldwide. This program fosters critical thinking, creativity, and cultural appreciation through the study of the English language and literature. Studying literature enriches understanding of human experiences, fosters empathy, and sharpens analytical skills, preparing students for meaningful engagement with the world.

Discover how this program can inspire and prepare you for success in an increasingly globalized society.

Sincerely,
Dr. Hanan Madanat
Head of the English Language and Literature (ELL)

Study Plan

Details about the study plan and curriculum.

Course Curriculum: 136 Credit Hours

Guidance Plan

Guidelines and plan for student guidance.

Course Curriculum: 136 Credit Hours

List of Competencies

English Language and Literature (Ceased Enrollment) - List of Competencies

COMMUNICATIONS

  • Develop active reading comprehension skills, and deploy those skills in analyzing texts.
  • Able to recognize and understand different aspects of literary theory, and build up a technical vocabulary.
  • Analyze literary texts in terms of genres, elements of literary texts such as character, plot, setting, characterization, point of view, style and figures of speech.
  • Possesses critical writing skills, especially in essay.

 

 

CRITICAL & CREATIVE THINKING

  • Understand a variety literary works related to different periods of time, identify and analyze the various elements of fiction as reflected in the texts, interpret the different themes in the texts and relate them to relevant issues.

  • Demonstrate grasp of basic theoretical concepts underlying contemporary approaches to literature and of the major differences among them.

  • Able to use the methods and materials of literary

 

 

PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT & RESPONSIBILITY

  • Know that language and literature are not only different but also similar and be able to notice and understand the similarities and the differences, between languages.
  • Appreciate ethical issues in language, literature and linguistics, both in the internal structure of language and the varied uses of language in human life. 
  • Demonstrates eagerness to seek new knowledge for enjoyment and personal growth.

 

Course Description

Detailed descriptions of the courses offered.

2201099 6 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
3 0 - _
This integrated remedial course in English is designed to improve the? proficiency of the English Department students who fail the English Proficiency Test? (EPT).

2201104 3 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
3 0 - _
This course analyzes the concept of culture and studies the relationship? between culture, behavior, and the communication of individuals and groups.

2201111 3 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
3 0 - _
This course is an introduction to samples from literature written in English in? the three basic genres of poetry, drama and fiction in addition to prose essays.

2201112 3 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
3 0 - _
This course is concerned with helping students to develop conversational skills? needed to express and understand basic topics and language functions.

2201114 3 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
3 0 - _
This course seeks to improve the writing abilities of the students through? exposing them to the essential components of the English paragraph. They will be? trained to apply their knowledge to master the technique of paragraph development? and learn the difference between the paragraphs in Arabic and in English.??

2201116 3 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
3 0 - _
This course introduces effective reading and inferential thinking skills.? Emphasis is placed on vocabulary, comprehension, and reading strategies. Upon? completion, students should be able to determine main ideas and supporting details,? recognize basic patterns of organization, draw conclusions, and understand? vocabulary in context.??

2201211 3 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
3 0 702202 _
This course introduces students to the tools and techniques of copyediting and writing, both of which are highly transferable and marketable skills in a wide array of professional settings. Through this course, students learn best practices for editing and writing text in various formats as well as covers common grammar and punctuation rules. By the end of the course, students will have gained the skills and confidence necessary to create effective content and edit their own and other?s writing.

2201221 3 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
3 0 _ _
This course introduces students to the English syntactic structures in terms of functions (subject, direct object, indirect object, subject complement, etc.) and categories (NP, VP, Adj. PP etc.). It also highlights sentence types (simple, compound, complex).

2231222 3 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
3 0 _ _
This course is designed to acquaint students with the basic theoretical? principles of English phonetics. Special emphasis is given to place and manner of? articulation, stress and intonation and transcription, as well as aspects of connected? speech.??

2201224 3 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
3 0 _ _
An introduction to Linguistic Science: Its aims, aspects and relation to other? social disciplines. Furthermore, the course aims at acquainting the students with the? nature of human language, its characteristics, functions and components. A fairly? detailed study of language components will be presented within the overall framework? of modern linguistic theories, in particular the Structural and the Generative Schools.? Throughout the course, emphasis will be on the components of English.?

2231231 3 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
3 0 _ _
This is a survey course of the major authors and literary genres of the period,? with a study of the major literary and social forces that helped to shape the cultural? context of the time. Beowulf and its place in the epic literary tradition together with?The Canterbury Tales as a picture of medieval life will be emphasized, together with? the principal focus on the Renaissance.??

2201234 3 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
3 0 _ _
As a survey course, this is essentially an overview of the American literary? canon from the beginnings to the Civil War. Emphasis is to be placed on major texts? and authors representing the various literary and intellectual trends and movements in? the Colonial, Federal and Romantic periods, such as early promotional literary? Puritanism, Deism, Romanticism and Transcendentalism. Special attention is to be? given to prominent historical incidents and events.?

2201241 3 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
3 0 - _
A general course that teaches the student the elements of drama (dialogue,? action, plot, characterization) through detailed study of representative plays. Particular? attention is paid to the major types of drama, tragedy and comedy, with some help? from the theoreticians.??

2201251 3 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
3 0 _ _
This course aims at introducing students to the genre of the short story through? tracing its origins and its development from 1840 to the present times. To achieve its? purposes, the course selects some twenty stories, beginning with the pioneers of the? genre, like Poe, Turgenev, Maupassant, and the modernists, such as Joyce, Lawrence,? Hemingway, Faulkner, and Beckett, among others.??

2201311 3 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
3 0 _ _
This course focuses on technical writing and its applications, its theories, and? its practice. The types of writing to be taught include resumes, cover letters,? recommendations, feasibility studies, status reports, progress reports, abstracts,? proposals, memos, evaluations, reading responses, and a formal report. Writing tips? pertaining to matters of grammar and style will be emphasized.??

2201312 3 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
3 0 _ _
This course aims at providing students with a solid background in research? methods which furnish a guide to writing meaningful, clear and correct research? papers. Special emphasis is placed on: finding a topic, gathering data, taking notes,? and getting from a rough draft to a final paper. This requires a good command of the? proper documentation techniques, handling citations and quotations, works cited, etc.,? according to the MLA style sheet. Students also receive adequate training in the? proper use of library materials such as reference books, journal articles, dissertation? abstracts, etc. By the end of the semester, students are required to submit a full fledged research paper.?

2201321 3 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
3 0 _ _
This is an advanced course in English syntax. It has a prerequisite, namely,? Syntax I, which deals with the structure of the simple sentence. In contrast, this course? deals primarily with complex, compound, and complex-compound sentences. The two? courses complement each other and attach equal significance to both theory and? practice.??

2201322 3 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
3 0 _ _
Acquainting students with the concepts of discourse analysis and its? emergence as a field of investigation in language studies. It handles topics such as? spoken vs. written discourse, conversational analysis of sentence grammar vs. text? grammar, text structure, cohesive devices (connectives, ellipsis, reference, lexical? cohesion, etc.), coherence, and types of inference (entailment and presupposition).??

2201323 3 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
3 0 702520 _
The course provides an introduction to the theoretical assumptions underlying? the Transformational Generative Theory and its mechanism, in particular the Standard? Theory presented in Chomsky?s Aspects of the Theory of Syntax. Throughout the? course, emphasis will be on the facts of English syntax.??

2201324 3 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
3 0 _ _
Acquainting the students with the major concepts of English semantics such as? sense, meaning, lexical relations, sentential relations, componential analysis, and? semantic theory. Concepts like deep structure and semantic representations of? sentence meaning, ambiguity, as well as the logic of natural languages are emphasized? in this course.?

2201325 3 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
3 0 _ _
This course is designed to help students improve their pronunciation. It offers? intensive practice in the pronunciation and recognition of patterns of English stress,? rhythm, and intonation. Students will further enhance intelligible speech in English? through receiving intensive practical training in the phonology of English including? common contractions, reductions, weak forms, deletions, assimilation, and the effects? of specific phonetic environments. Students will also focus on refining English? pronunciation skills with an emphasis on eliminating production errors in spontaneous? spoken English.?

2201330 3 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
3 0 _ _
This course is an extensive study of the major authors of the Restoration and? the Eighteenth century in prose and poetry; authors such as the metaphysical poets,? Milton, Pope, Swift, Johnson, Goldsmith, Gray, Defoe, and Fielding. It also provides? insights into the intellectual, philosophical, and religious life of the time.?

2201333 3 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
3 0 _ _
This course provides a study of Romanticism and Victorianism. The? prominent Romantic poets and essayist, and their Victorian counterparts, are to be? studied at length. Selections from the novels and plays of the period may be chosen to? illustrate the generic and thematic richness of this important century.??

2201334 3 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
3 0 _ _
This course explores a wide range of the most influential and innovative? writers who wrote during the American Renaissance. The works of Melville,? Hawthorne, Whitman, Dickinson, Emerson, Thoreau, Poe, Douglass, Fuller, and? Stowe, to name only a few, will be read discussed, and analyzed. The history of this? era and its impact on those writers is also highlighted.??

2201341 3 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
3 0 _ _
An introduction to both the world and art of the novel. Elements of the novel? (setting, plot, characterization, etc.) will receive ample treatment, and so will the? cultural and historical background. Through an in-depth study of 4?6 novels,? students will be acquainted with the various styles and trends within this rich genre.?

2201342 3 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
3 0 _ _
An in-depth study of the modern/contemporary novel. Emphasis will be placed? on the more recent and innovative developments in the genre in the recent years. Post modernist novelists are to be adequately represented, such as Conrad, Joyce,? Lawrence, Forster, etc.??

702439 3 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
3 0 702316 _
In this course, students deal with literary topics selected by the instructor but are also of special interest to students and not particularly included in the courses which the Department offers. The course is not intended as a survey course; rather it seeks to draw students? attention to specific controversial literary issues and to promote familiarity with, and deep understanding of, such issues. It also involves submitting a term paper, which can be presented and discussed in class.

2201351 3 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
3 0 _ _
A general background about Shakespeare and his age, his life and works is? given. Together with that, the course gives a brief survey of the development of? Shakespearian criticism during the ages. But the crux of the course is the detailed? study of several plays (5?7) selected from among the various types of Shakespearian? drama.??

2201352 3 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
3 0 _ _
Expanding the canon through emphasizing a balance between Western and? non-Western literatures by examining a variety of modern literary works to? consolidate the awareness regarding travels in modernity and post-modernity world wide

2201361 3 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
3 0 _ _
Training students to translate various types of texts from English into? idiomatic Arabic. Students will be presented with different text types ranging from? texts of a general nature to those which are more specialized. In addition to the? effective techniques of translation, students will learn how to consider other important? elements pertaining to structural relations and contextuality.?

2201362 3 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
3 0 703241 _
This course builds on students? learning experiences in Translation I. It? prepares students to translate longer texts of various types from Arabic into English,? while highlighting the basic problems facing Arab learners of English translation.? Aspects of text analysis, sentential and structural relations together with the? importance of context in translation must be emphasized in this course.??

2201363 3 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
3 0 _ _
The instructor chooses a specialized field of translation that is not fully? covered in other translation courses to give students who are interested in taking up? translation as a profession a competitive edge in the job market. Such fields may? include, but are not limited to, legal, scientific, business, or medical fields.??

2201371 3 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
3 0 _ _
Provides students with the proper training needed for writing news reports,? editorials, feature stories, etc. It also emphasizes the language structures, vocabulary? and format needed for that purpose. Students are to be exposed to model articles,? reports, etc. that they can imitate and improvise on.??

2201373 3 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
3 0 _ _
Helps students to become active speech communicators and critical listeners.? Students will learn how to speak confidently and enthusiastically and how to be? motivating, and persuasive on the platform. Creative training techniques, methods of? reasoning, and effective language symbols will be examined and studied at length.? Some appropriate written and audio-visual material is to be used. Noted Speakers? from campus as well as off-campus are to be invited periodically.??

22001421 3 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
3 0 _ _
This course introduces students to a basic fact about language in general and? English in particular. This fact is that English is not a single monolithic linguistic? system. Like other living languages English exhibits variation at all levels of? structure, from phonology to discourse. The course outlines and elaborates on the? parameters by which language use shows obvious differences. The basic parameters? are: region, social class, ethnic group, sex, age, situation, and mode of use in a variety? of professional fields-(registers).?

2201422 3 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
3 0 _ _
This course is primarily a survey of the origins and development of the? English language to the present time, including the Indo-European family of? languages, Old English, Middle English, and Modern English. The focus throughout? remains on the internal history of English.??

2201423 3 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
0 6 _ _
This course is a general introduction to psycholinguistics. It aims to present an? interdisciplinary approach to the study of language as a main communication tool. It? covers areas such as speech perception, word recognition, sentence production,? language acquisition and comprehension. The course looks into how language? behavior is linked to our cognitive understanding and the role of the mind and the? brain from a neurolinguistic point of view. Students will learn about the nature of the? language, the psychological aspects of language use, how the language skills are? developed, as well as human information processing.?

702527 3 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
3 0 702202 _
This course explores the role of gender in society both within Arab and global contexts. The course covers the ways in which gender intersects with the social, economic, and political development of societies and the impact of gender on the development of communities. By the end of this course, students will have a comprehensive understanding of the challenges and opportunities in the area of gender studies and be prepared to make a positive impact in this field.

2201431 3 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
3 0 _ _
Highlighting both the socio-political factors and the inter-disciplinary nature? of twentieth-century English literature through examining the impact of the two world? wars as well as philosophy, psychology, art, anthropology, etc., on leading English? writers from the turn of the century.??

2201434 3 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
3 0 _ _
A study of 20th ? Century American literature. The course will focus on the? major poets, novelists and dramatists of the period through a study and a survey of? representative works. It will also lay emphasis on the main literary concepts,? movements and schools characteristic of the period.??

2231441 3 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
2 0 702138 _
This course aims to develop students' critical thinking by training them in various? schools of literary criticism. After a short survey of the history of criticism, students? will focus on the recent developments in literary theory, especially post-structuralism.??

2201448 3 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
3 0 _ _
The course aims at training students to teach English as a second language. It? explores the different methods and strategies that are used to teach English as a? second language. It focuses on how to teach the four basic skills of language? (reading, writing, speaking, and listening). Furthermore, the course aims at? introducing students to the characteristics of a successful/unsuccessful class of? English as a second language.?

2201451 3 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
3 0 _ _
This course is based on the study and analysis of such world literary? masterpieces as The Odyssey, The Oresteia, The Epic of Gilgamesh, The Bible, The? Book of Songs, Islamic Sufi Literature, One Thousand and One Nights, The Holy? Koran and The Divine Comedy.??

2201471 3 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
3 0 _ _
This is a special course for students who wish to develop their creative skills in one, some, or all the various literary genres in which they have either demonstrated ability or a strong interest: poetry, fiction, drama, non-fiction prose, etc. Students are expected to study excellent models from the genres just listed with the aim of appreciating the thematic, stylistic, and structural features which make fine literature. They are also required to write their own pieces which will be examined by all participants, including the instructor. Such pieces are to be revised and re-rewritten in light of the instructor?s and students? comments. The final project consists of a publishable collection of short texts or a single long text which the student writes after a series of revisions. The Department may want to publish texts in a literary journal or magazine. Noted literary figures from the country and abroad may be invited to conduct some of the meetings.

2201472 3 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
3 0 _ _
This course offers the students an overview of the literary periods and genres that they? have studied in previous years. Upon finishing the course, the students will obtain a? comprehensive understanding of different approaches to the study of literature that? will fill gaps in their education.??

2201479 3 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
3 0 _ _
This course tries to provide a clear, comprehensive picture of the society and? culture of the United States of America: its economy, politics, history, media,? educational system, religion, ethnicity and culture. It also attempts to place in context? the often fragmented information about the U.S., thus providing appropriate? foundation for further study.??

2201481 3 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
3 0 _ _
The focus here is on a topic that has not been adequately covered in other courses. Choices may vary from one semester to another at the discretion of the instructor and on the basis of the needs of students. Students are often expected to give presentations and write term papers relevant to the content of the course.

2201482 3 CH. Prerequisite Co-requisite
3 0 _ _
The content of this course varies from one instructor to another. It is actually? determined by the research interest of the instructor according to his area of? specialization. The course usually provides an in-depth investigation of a certain? linguistic topic that has not been thoroughly covered in the language courses offered? in the study plan. Students may be required to make presentations and write term? papers in this course.?

Program Learning Outcomes

English Language and Literature (Ceased Enrollment) Program Learning Outcomes

Student learning outcomes describe what students are expected to know and be able to do by the time of graduation. By the time of graduation, the English Language and Literature (Ceased Enrollment) Department's program must enable students to attain an ability to:

  • PLO1: Able to analyze literary texts in terms of genres, elements as well as character, characterization, plot, setting, point of view, style and figures of speech.
  • PLO2: Able to recognize various literary schools and movements, theories of literary criticism and their applications.
  • PLO3: Able to use texts to support literary analysis and deploy critical writing skills.
  • PLO4: Able to relate to human situations depicted in fiction, develop a global perspective on art and life, and appreciate cultural, racial and ethnic diversity.
  • PLO5 : Able to work on a team or independently in a range of relevant fields: NGO, legal, creative industries, diplomatic, educational, business or news media.